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Contractor chosen for $13M Chelmsford site

By Grant Welker, gwelker@lowellsun.com

Updated:
11/09/2012 06:35:44 AM EST

CHELMSFORD -- A contractor has been chosen for the latest renovation phase for the town's new public-works building.

The Boston company, M. O'Connor Contracting, has also worked with the town on renovating the Old Town Hall in the town center into the Chelmsford Center for the Arts, and the former North Town Hall in North Chelmsford into the Chelmsford Community Center. It was chosen by the Board of Selectmen Monday as the lowest of 15 bidders.

Town officials were scheduled to meet with M. O'Connor on Friday to begin negotiations on a contract.

"We're very comfortable with them," said Patrick Maloney, chairman of the town Permanent Building Committee, which has managed most of the project.

M. O'Connor bid a maximum of $2,636,000 for the project, which will include renovating office space in the 9 Alpha Road building, as well as new mechanical equipment, plumbing, electrical and other systems. It is expected to take about six months, at which time public-works, engineering and sewer office workers will move in. That will free up room in Town Hall, part of which will be used for the new central fire station that will be built in the Town Hall parking lot starting next year.

The recycling office may also move to the new building, Maloney said.

"We always knew it would make sense to put them over there," he said.

Town Meeting voters overwhelmingly approved $1.

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7 million in May for the second phase work, with the remainder of the cost of the phase coming from money already in the project's account.

The third phase of the building project will include new maintenance bays, fueling stations and a washing area for trucks, Maloney said. Town Manager Paul Cohen said there isn't yet a firm schedule or price tag for the third phase, but it won't start until at least 2014 and cost a few million dollars.

The total project is estimated to cost $13.1 million. The first phase cost $5.1 million and included a new stormwater management system, retaining walls and retention pools.

Of the 38 or so employees who will move into the building, they are currently scattered. Engineering and administrative personnel are at Town Hall, the sewer department is in a leased building on Kidder Road off Littleton Road, and the highway department is on Richardson Road.

The town first sought to buy the building, formerly the Old Mother Hubbard dog-food plant, in 2009 but Town Meeting rejected the proposal. A new facility at the time was said to cost at least $31 million. After that proposal failed, the project was broken into three phases, with the first receiving approval the following year.

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